Fall 2000

GADGET REVIEWS - GUYATONE MICROS

These 5 new winning additions to the tiny Guyatone line were a huge hit with the fickle 'Geek staff. We had a month or so to test and re-test all of these units and were continually impressed by them whether it was in the studio or on stage. Before we unload all the praise at once, here are some details. Guyatone's stompers are all house in a stamped steel chassis. Despite their ultra-tiny size (2.75"W x 3.875"L x 1.5"H), these units are well thought out in terms of quality, design, and sound. Easy access to the battery is made possible by unstrapping a fitted rubber seal that connects the upper housing to the unit's bottom metal plate. The rubber seal also doubles as a non-slip surface to help keep the pedal steady on those slippery stages. The pedal's knobs are easy to dial in, thanks to their slender and tall dimensions. Even the tiny flip switches that appear on a few of the Guyatone lineup are easy to reach. By far the nicest feature on all these Guyatone's is the smooth metal stomp switch. No more nasty pops and clicks with these smart fellows! The throw off the switch simply goes down to activate or deactivate the effect with very little effort or worry. All of the 'Geek staff commented on the ease of use and wondered why more manufacturers don't employ this same switch. Anybody hearing this?

OD-2 Overdrive - The OD-2 Overdrive is a no-nonsense overdrive that's been highly touted by more than a few publications as a miniature Tubescreamer. While it's not a dead ringer for the heralded "green one," it certainly has it's own unmistakable character and tone that won all of us over. It's not anywhere as tight and compressed as the TS9 but finds it's own voice and strength in being a little more airy and open sounding while adding a bit more low-end punch. Overall, we enjoyed some of the OD-2's more gentle drive settings. This lower range seemed to show off the warm amp-like subtleties of the OD-2 much better than the harsher settings. The lack of a tone knob didn't bother us a bit at the lower settings but we felt like reaching for one when pushing the drive into the upper 75-100% range. A tiny bit of roll-off here to tame the slightly trebly sound would have been nice. Despite this very slight complaint, the OD-2 is a wonderfully refreshing pedal! It absolutely nails that barely broken up amp sound of an old Fender Bassman or Twin with no hint of that buzzy transistorized nonsense we're so used to hearing from some of the bigger boys' pedals. Whether or not it will replace the Tubescreamer as the ultimate overdrive is not really the question - we are just thrilled to have a brand new flavor!

ST-2 Compressor/Sustainer - Compressor pedals are usually not the most popular effect due to the device's subtle nature. It's most often used to make small tweaks in sculpting a players overall sound and rarely stands out unless pushed into the extreme outer limits of squash. The 'Geek staff are compressor freaks! Aside from drawing up thousands of tiny pedals a month here at the 'Geek, we love smashing guitar signals! Those clever Guyatone folks got it right on this one! We fell in love with its tight, clear tone and transparent punch right off the bat. In comparing the ST-2 with a whole arsenal of compressors (Boss, CS2, Boss, CS3, Ibanez CP9, and an old Ross Compressor), we found the ST-2 left our signal crisper and more highly focused than the competition with none of the muddiness that the other pedals displayed at higher settings. One extra bonus is a direct switch that allows you to mix your direct sound with the effected sound in equal parts. This takes some of the edge off the effect by letting some of the original signal through, making for a very smooth and natural feel.

SV-2 Slow Volume - This is Guyatone's take on the old discontinued Boss Slow Gear from the 80's. While I doubt you'll be pulling this out on every song or solo, it's a unique effect that's a ton of fun to play around with. The SV-2 is basically a voltage-controlled volume pedal that can create smooth, realistic swells, backward simulation, and choppy rhythmic phrases. It's a pick sensitive effect that basically cuts your loudest signal and then releases the signal as it's level gets lower. This may take a little bit of dialing in order for it to match your song's tempo and note selection, but once you're dialed in there is all kinds of room for cool tricks and atmospheric expression. Chords and leads all take on a new dimension as long as you begin to play to the effect. We stacked a few distortion boxes in front of the SV-2 and a delay behind it for all kinds of creepy space swells and waves of pulsing distortion. Great fun and well worth the cost even if it's only for a song or two!

VT-3 Vintage Tremolo - This full-bodied tremolo is hands down one of the smoothest pedals we've tried out here at the Guitar Geek. It's a classic Fender tremolo in a box! Beyond that, there isn't much else to say besides it's extra warm, extra rich, and dialed in to that sweet spot you can only find on a vintage amplifier. This thing is absolutely stunning in terms of tone and we can't recommend it enough! Bravo, Guyatone!

FL-3 Flanger - A nice, refreshing take on an old classic. Aside from the rate and depth knobs, Guyatone offers 3 different resonance sweeps that range from mellow to radical. We really dug the mellower settings. The FL-3 creates a very warm and convincing chorus along with some slightly detuned vibrato sounds. The sweeps were gentle and gave our guitar sounds a nice and subtle ambience. The second sweep delved into the standard flanging that had a nice metallic "ping" to it. With a little tweaking we were able to create some very funky, filtered notch-like sounds that were almost vowel-like. Only when you take the FL-3 into the more extreme settings then it becomes very evident that this is no traditional sweep. The sweep is actually slower going up to the peak frequency and faster coming off which gives a fairly uneven feel which is very refreshing and interesting from the excursion into the realms of jet plane sounds and death rays, but this really shines in the more reserved ranges.